Sunday, July 18, 2010

Onset of monsoons makes the greenest patch of forests in India goes greener. It’s not only the Greenery of Western Ghats which makes me stand on one feat to go to the Ghats but the aromatic fresh air that makes you feel green from the inside, colourful wild flowers dancing in the mild breeze, birds and insects making their peculiar noises, little water-falls like white lines on a green canvas, clouds floating over the trees and mountain peaks, the scene and experience is nothing but the bliss of heaven on earth.

A Flower drenched in Monsoons

Last weekend I along with 3 of my close friends Satya (Aka Love Guru), Man Singh (Aka Maniya), and Ashish (Aka Khaj) decided to do a trek from Castle rock railway station to the Gorgeous “Doodh Sagar Water falls”.

The Castle Rock Railway Station

At the time of start the trek sounded like one of the easiest treks that we will have, but this off beat trek along the sidelines of railway track threw up its own challenges. Lining on the side ways of trek was extremely thin and the walking on the rocky bed of railway tracks was extremely cumbersome. Finally we retorted to placing baby steps on the concrete rails of the trek.

The sign board of Breganza Ghat section introduced us to the first curves on the railway tracks, and very soon came along our first tunnel. One needs to be ultra cautious in railway tunnels as these tunnels attract a lot of mice because of food items dropped from the train by the passenger, which in turn attracts Snakes in the surroundings.

Curvy Tracks

Inside a Tunnel

Once we reached Caranzole railway station, we decided to board a Goods train going towards Doodh Sagar so that we can spend more time with the Cynosure of the trip i.e. the falls itself. We requested the goods train driver to provide us the lift till Doddh Sagar Falls, and the railway engine driver obliged. Boarding the railway engine made me nostalgic and took me to those days of my childhood when I had a lasting desire to become a railway engine driver. Journey on the extended platform of a goods train sponsored by the benevolent Indian railways is a treat for any off beat traveler like me.

It was raining heavily as we went deeper in to the Ghats. Mother Nature was giving us best example of “How if we take care of the nature, the nature will take care of us”.

Water Drops on the Tracks (Photographed By Satyesh)

We left the train ride at the Doodh Sagar railway station. And as soon as the train and its noise was gone our ears were getting senses of aquatic acoustics. As soon as we crossed the next tunnel ahead of us the volume of water fall was getting more and more pronounced. This was coupled along with the absolute white sight of a water fall amidst a green frame.

As we reached closer to water fall I could see a smile on each one of the face present near the fall. It took me a lttle bit a time to adjust myself with magnanimity of the sight in front of me. Water plummets hundreds of feet in large volume, in cascades, forming one of the most spectacular of all natural phenomena.

Doodh Sagar Waterfalls

One of my all time favourite flavour has been the tasteless water flowing through the untamed and musical cascades in the Ghats, and I was not going to miss a single opportunity to taste the water of the Doodh Sagar water falls. I quenched my thirst and the taste and coolness of water quenched my desire. I sincerely feel that to experience the real charm and the magic of the falls, one need to personally be there.

It was raining heavily near the falls and after some time we realized that it was not the rains but actually the clouds full of water around us which were making us drenched from head to tow.

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We took back a passengers train on our way back. One of the astonishing things about the tiny station of “Doodh Sagar” is the fact that it has a big hear as big as the water fall that it hosts. There is a note written on the station that “Tickets will not be sold at this station”

The Castle Rock

As we were coming back I was thanking the god and Indian railways all the way for providing so much of delightful experiences in a single day.